Darth Vader's Nightmare
by house-of-green
Summary: Right before The Empire Strikes Back, Darth Vader has a dark vision of Luke.


He woke screaming, an unearthly sound coming from his scarred lips. His breathing was ragged and forced, even in his oxygen regulated bed chamber. He could feel his chest ache at the speed of his breathing, his head dizzy from the lack of oxygen. He closed his eyes and focused on slowing his breathe and heart rate before sitting up enough to allow him to lean his head against the chamber wall. He let out a low growl at feeling the cold metal of the wall against his skin. His hatred for his own body pulsed through him, though he did not reach to the side table for his mask. As much as he hated his body, he hated the mask even more. It was as a symbol of his downfall, his mistakes, how he always fell short, how separated he was from those he loved. Not that it mattered, they would not love him without the mask on, either.

He covered his face with his metal hands, trying to block out the memories of losing them and then fixing them. He needed to concentrate on this dream if he was going to uncover the meaning and stop it from happening. He took in a final breathe before immersing himself in the vivid nightmare.

His heavy metal limbs made each step through the Death Star echo with his presence, his pace steady and deliberate. He is going to check on the progress of a computer port that was supposed to be completed the previous day, Running after the incompetent builders got tedious, but he had to do what The Emperor wanted. He could not even consider over-throwing him without The Emperor knowing about it; he kept too tight a watch on Vader.

He heard a child-like cry through The Force. He stopped and felt for the source of the sound. It was in the prison block. Of course! They had intercepted some rebels and they were being held for him to question. But why would one of them be crying? He was the only one to torture or question any of them.

The cries grew louder and he found himself in a cell block with one other person: his son. He was in an unbelievable amount of pain, so he reached for his son. He was not sure what he intended to do, but he could not see him cry this way.

As he approached the crying grew louder, and he glanced down at himself. He was wearing the clothes he owned when he killed the younglings...and his hands were covered in blood.

No.

There was no way he did anything to Luke, he looked around the cell block frantically for any sign that it was not he himself who hurt Luke, but there was nothing. He was frozen in the spot, he could not dare meet Luke's eyes, he could not believe his hands were soaked in his blood.

He tried to block out the screaming but it kept growing.

"How could you do this to me? I thought you loved me!"

It was too much for him to handle. He turned to grab his cloak, perhaps he could wash some of the blood off of both of them. But there in the entryway was The Emperor. His arms were folded and he scowled down at Vader.

"You were not to touch him. He will never join us now."

Vader felt himself fall to his knees, tears in his eyes.

He heard The Emperor say over and over again that it was his fault, that he had killed them, that he would never escape the prison of the suit and mask. He would never look at anyone with his eyes again, never be held by anyone he loved.

With a muffled sob, Vader lifted his head up and gazed around him. He was in still in bed, in his bed chamber on the Death Star. He felt for The Emperor, who was in a deep meditation on his own ship. In a split second decision, he decided to check on Luke. It was a great risk to check on his son; if The Emperor ever found out that Darth Vader knew the whereabouts of his son and checked on him, he would surely be tortured and killed.

Luke was resting in a makeshift bed, still on the Hoth System, still in the protection of his sister and her friends. He took a risk he dared not take often, he said his son's name over their bond.

"Luke?" His Force voice surprised him. He was used to being commanding and strong, but with his family he felt weak and vulnerable.

Luke stirred, but there was no answer.

Vader pursed his lips in pain, closing the bond securely to ensure that Luke would not be able to open it when Vader was in the presence of The Emperor.

With a start, he realzied he was crying. He needed to find his son soon, so he could invite him to help end the war. He would no longer be alone, no longer be controlled by anyone. Surely his son would understand how he felt. Luke was strong with The Force, and seemed to be very strong minded. Luke would be able to understand even with the limited amount he could say and think. He would err on the side of caution, so that the Emperor would not find out that they were going to overthrow him. On his own Vader was not strong enough emotionally to stand up to The Emperor, with someone as strong as Luke by his side, he was sure he could do it. It was just a matter of timing.


End file.
